Antonios D. Mazaris

Aristotle University of Thessaloniki | AUTH · Department of Ecology

Cultural ecosystem services (CES) provide a range of aesthetic and recreational benefits. However, they have not been extensively assessed due to methodological challenges, despite their use and non-use values for local and wider communities. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the economic importance and spatial distribution of recreational divi...

Biological invasions, resulting from human activities, exert substantial impacts on ecosystems worldwide. This review focuses on marine invasive alien species (IAS) in Europe, examining the current state, proposing strategies to address the problem, and offering recommendations for enhanced management. Effective management of biological invasions r...

A meta-analysis and map of the monetary value of Meditteranean seagrass ecosystem services. The Mediterranean ecosystem services are valued at 7.3 billion dollars, emphasizing the need to protect these "hidden treasures". This valuation helps policymakers and stakeholders recognize the tangible benefits provided by seagrass meadows, which can lead...

Marine heatwaves (MHWs) are periods of abnormally warm ocean temperatures that severely impact marine ecosystems. Although they can propagate beneath the ocean’s surface, MHWs are typically assessed using sea surface temperatures. Here, we investigated the future evolution and depth penetration of MHWs across the Mediterranean basin. Our analysis r...

As climate-related impacts threaten marine biodiversity globally, it is important to adjust conservation efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change. Translating scientific knowledge into practical management, however, is often complicated due to resource, economic and policy constraints, generating a knowledge-action gap. To develop potentia...

For marine species, traveling with the current potentially reduces energetic costs. Still, the extent to which organisms adjust routes to follow current flow remains an open question. Moreover, the extent to which climate change is altering sea currents, and in turn species migration routes, remains unknown, representing a major challenge to spatia...

Rapid anthropogenic climate change is driving threatened biodiversity one step closer to extinction. Effects on native biodiversity are determined by an interplay between species' exposure to climate change and their specific ecological and life-history characteristics that render them even more susceptible. Impacts on biodiversity have already bee...

Climate change impacts on vertebrates have many implications. The thermal conditions of vertebrates during incubation are known to influence morphological, physiological, and behavioral traits. Thus, incubation temperatures have consequences for ecological and evolutionary processes, and for certain reptiles can determine sex. For oviparous reptile...

A potential strategy for marine species to cope with warming oceans is to track areas with optimal thermal conditions and shift their spatial distributions. However, the ability of species to successfully reach these areas in the future depends on the length of the paths and their exposure to extreme climatic conditions. Here, we use model predicti...

Stamatiadou, V, Mazaris, A, Mallios, Z, & Katsanevakis, S 2022, ‘Marine protected areas and recreational diving in the Aegean Sea’, paper presented at the 4th ESP Europe Conference: Ecosystem services empowering people and societies in times of crises, Heraklion, Greece, 10-14 October 2022.

Environmental policies, including the European Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD), generally rely on the measurement of indicators to assess the good environmental status (GES) and ensure the protection of marine ecosystems. However, depending on available scientific knowledge and monitoring programs in place, quantitative GES assessments a...

Stamatiadou, V, Mazaris, A, Mallios, Z, & Katsanevakis, S 2022, ‘Valuation and mapping of the recreational diving ecosystem service of the Aegean Sea’, paper presented at the ECSA 59:Using the best scientific knowledge for the sustainable management of estuaries and coastal seas, Kursaal, San Sebastian, Spain, 05-08 September 2022.

Assessing whether marine protected areas (MPAs) will maintain stable climatic conditions over time is a major scientific challenge. Yet, such assessments often rely on sea surface temperature data, largely ignoring the vertical dimension of the ocean environment. Here, we estimated the climate space of global marine protected sites and investigated...

Dugongs (Dugong dugon) experienced a serious population decline in China during the twentieth century, and their regional status is poorly understood. To determine their current distribution and status, we conducted a large-scale interview survey of marine resource users across four Chinese provinces and reviewed all available historical data cover...

Dugongs (Dugong dugon) experienced a serious population decline in China during the twentieth century, and their regional status is poorly understood. To determine their current distribution and status, we conducted a large-scale interview survey of marine resource users across four Chinese provinces and reviewed all available historical data cover...

Understanding the processes that underlay an ecological disaster represents a major scientific challenge. Here, we investigated phytoplankton and zooplankton community changes before and during a fauna mass kill in a European protected wetland. Evidence on gradual development and collapse of harmful phytoplankton blooms, allowed us to delineate the...

Extreme regional ocean warming events, like marine heatwaves (MHWs), could have severe and long-lasting impacts on species and ecosystems. Extreme and persistent warming of the ocean could directly threaten survival of marine species, as exceeding their thermal tolerance often leads to massive mortality events. Similarly, MHWs could further threate...

Given the accelerating rate of biodiversity loss, the need to prioritize marine areas for protection represents a major conservation challenge. The three-dimensionality of marine life and ecosystems is an inherent element of complexity for setting spatial conservation plans. Yet, the confidence of any recommendation largely depends on shifting clim...

Sea level rise could result in the loss and shrinkage of coastal habitats, jeopardizing the persistence of a number of species that rely upon these highly dynamic and sensitive areas. With reproduction and population recruitment depending exclusively on low-lying sandy beaches, marine turtles are among the organisms for which sea level rise represe...

Given the accelerating rate of biodiversity loss, the need to prioritize marine areas for protection represents a major conservation challenge. The three‐dimensionality of marine life and ecosystems is an inherent element of complexity for setting spatial conservation plans. Yet, the confidence of any recommendation largely depends on shifting clim...

There is an intense interest in long-term trends of species abundance that may reflect, for example, climate change or conservation actions. Less well studied are patterns in the magnitude of inter-annual variability in abundance across large spatial scales. We collated abundance time-series for 133 nesting sites across the globe of the seven sea t...

Global efforts to halt biodiversity loss mandate the establishment of protected areas. In the face of habitat loss and climate uncertainty, large-scale networks of protected areas connected by corridors are needed to increase the dispersal and persistence potential of biota. For example, the recent European Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 defines cl...

In the pelagic food web of lakes, zooplankton offers the linkage between phytoplankton and fish, greatly affecting but also mirroring the functionality and stability of the ecosystem. Despite the increased interest on the development of water quality indices, incorporating zooplankton data on metrics used for the assessment of natural lakes remains...

While polyandry in sea turtles is indicated through multiple-paternity analyses of off�spring, confirmed observations of the same female mating with multiple males are extremely challenging to obtain. To contribute to this discussion, we analysed a long�term photo-identification database (>20 years) of adult male and female loggerhead sea turtles...

Climate plays a major role in shaping biodiversity patterns over time and space, with ongoing changes leading to the reorganization of ecosystems, which challenges conservation initiatives. Identifying areas that could serve as possible climate-change refugia for future biodiversity is, thus, critical for both conservation and management. Here, we...

Sea turtles are highly mobile species that use oceanic, neritic, and coastal habitats as nursery, foraging, wintering, breeding and migration areas at distant locations throughout their lifetime. Due to their highly migratory nature and large-scale habitat use, they are subjected to multiple threats across marine and coastal ecosystems that can imp...

Delineating priority areas for highly mobile marine megafauna represents a major challenge for conservation biology. To manage such areas, one must understand both their spatial properties (i.e., location, number, extent), and the level of exposure to a number of given pressures. Here, we used a combination of ensemble distribution models, field-ba...

Shifting distribution to track suitable climate is a potential strategy for marine species to cope with ocean warming. Yet, the ability of species to successfully reach future climate analogs largely depends on the length of the paths that connect them, and on the exposure of these paths to extreme climates during this transition. Here, we evaluate...

The Black Sea remains one of the most fragile marine systems globally. The six countries that share the coastline of this semi-enclosed sea have declared, through the Convention on Biological Diversity and regional conventions, their intention to conserve biodiversity and increase the coverage of the protected areas. However, currently only a small...

Marine Ecosystem Models (MEMs) provide a deeper understanding of marine ecosystem dynamics. The United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development has highlighted the need to deploy these complex mechanistic spatial-temporal models to engage policy makers and society into dialogues towards sustainably managed oceans. From our shared...

Identification of important habitats of charismatic marine megafauna is essential to enhance our conservation capacity. Still, for species like sea turtles that have a long-life span, a complex life history and a highly migratory nature, spatially delineating important marine areas is not a simple task. Even in the case that such areas could be ide...

ContextLandscape connectivity quantification is essential to achieve effective conservation of wildlife. Graph theory is a common mathematical framework for representing habitat patch networks and evaluating their connectivity.Objectives While several graph-related indices have been used for this purpose, there is still need to evaluate landscape c...

The magnitude and frequency of extreme warming events over the last decades pose threats to biodiversity. In the near future, heatwaves will become even more frequent and longer-lasting. As ectothermic species, sea turtles are particularly vulnerable to climate change, with their reproductive success and offspring sex ratios dependent on in-nest co...

Rising ocean temperature impacts the functionality and structure of ecosystems, further triggering the redistribution of biodiversity. Still, the magnitude and anticipated impacts of ocean warming are not expected to be uniform across marine space. Here, we developed a two-fold index-based approach to provide an integrated climatic vulnerability as...

Context National borders remain an impediment to efficient preservation of biodiversity and ecosystems. For transboundary water resources, conservation planning becomes more challenging, as competitive interests make these sensitive and productive systems focal points of interstate conflicts. Objectives This global study aims to explore the patter...

Climate change is postulated to alter the distribution and abundance of species which serve as vectors for pathogens and is thus expected to affect the transmission of infectious, vector-borne diseases such as malaria. The ability to project and therefore, to mitigate the risk of potential expansion of infectious diseases requires an understanding...

Like most ocean regions today, the European and contiguous seas experience cumulative impacts from local human activities and global pressures. They are largely in poor environmental condition with deteriorating trends. Despite several success stories, European policies for marine conservation fall short of being effective. Acknowledging the challe...

Climate change (CC) is a key, global driver of change of marine ecosystems. At local and regional scales, other local human stressors (LS) can interact with CC and modify its effects on marine ecosystems. Understanding the response of the marine environment to the combined effects of CC and LS is crucial to inform marine ecosystem-based management...

The Mediterranean Sea is subject to multiple human pressures increasingly threatening its unique biodiversity. Spatially explicit information on the ecological status of marine ecosystems is therefore key to an effective maritime spatial planning and management, and to help the achievement of environmental targets. Here, we summarized scientific da...

Green Infrastructure (GI) is defined as a network of natural and semi-natural areas that is strategically designed and managed to deliver a wide range of ecosystem services and to enhance human wellbeing. In Europe, the GI concept has been strongly related to the concepts of multifunctionality, climate change, and green growth, particularly in the...

ContextArtificial light at night (ALAN) represents a significant threat to biodiversity. Given that protected areas (PAs) are in relative darkness compared to the surrounding sites, they could be considered an effective tool towards eliminating the impacts of ALAN. However, the extent to which climate change-induced shifts would drive species out o...

ContextIdentifying animals movement through the landscape and delineating key corridors is critical for effective management and conservation. Still, assessments of space-use patterns and landscape connectivity are subjected to many limitations, especially in large scales.Objectives The main objective of this study was to assess functional connecti...

Ecosystem-based management requires an assessment of the cumulative effects of human pressures and environmental change. The operationalization and integration of cumulative effects assessments (CEA) into decision-making processes often lacks a comprehensive and transparent framework. A risk-based CEA framework that divides a CEA in risk identifica...

The ancient lakes Mikri Prespa and Megali Prespa are located in SE Europe at the transnational triangle and are globally recognized for their ecological significance. They host hundreds of flora and fauna species, and numerous types of habitat of conservational interest. They also provide a variety of ecosystem services. Over the last few decades,...

Nematodes represent an important group of animals in the decomposer food web, because of high diversities, abundances and functional roles supporting ecological processes, such as decomposition. They have been relatively well studied in numerous ecosystems, but have rather skipped attention in sea turtle nests at sandy shores, where a massive suppl...

Tracking data have led to evidence-based conservation of marine megafauna, but a disconnect remains between the many 1000s of individual animals that have been tracked and the use of these data in conservation and management actions. Furthermore, the focus of most conservation efforts is within Exclusive Economic Zones despite the ability of these...

Increased temperatures caused by anthropogenic climate change are becoming a major challenge for species. In particular, species that migrate over long distances are affected by altered climatic conditions at the various sites they frequent and en route. Here, we investigated whether climatic conditions experienced by sea turtles during their migra...

Protected areas represent the main tool for halting the continuing loss of biological diversity. The number and extent of protected areas is gradually increasing, but this expansion does not always ensure the efficient protection of key species, habitats, and ecosystem functioning. Today, the Natura 2000 network encompasses more than 27 000 sites,...

In the Anthropocene, marine ecosystems are rapidly shifting to new ecological states. Achieving effective conservation of marine biodiversity has become a fast‐moving target because of both global climate change and continuous shifts in marine policies. How prepared are we to deal with this crisis? We examined EU Member States Programs of Measures...

Marine protected areas (MPAs) represent the main tool for halting the loss of marine biodiversity. However, there is increasing evidence concerning their limited capacity to reduce or eliminate some threats even within their own boundaries. Here, we analysed a Europe-wide dataset comprising 31,579 threats recorded in 1692 sites of the European Unio...

Rapid anthropogenic climate change is a major threat to ocean biodiversity, creating a fast-moving target for marine conservation. Strategic conservation planning, and more recently marine spatial planning (MSP) are among the most promising management tools to operationalize and enforce marine conservation. As yet, climate change is seldom incorpor...

Climate change has been recognised as a major issue for coastal populations. Under this context, the potential socio-economic, environmental and health impacts at local, regional and global scales have received considerable attention by scientists. The knowledge gained feed official strategic documents, which aim to increase awareness but also prop...

As a response to increasing human pressures on marine ecosystems, the legislation aimed at improving the conservation and management of marine coastal areas in European and Contiguous Seas (ECS) underwent crucial advances. ECS, however, still remain largely affected by increasing threats leading to biodiversity loss. Here, by using emblematic case...

As a response to increasing human pressures on marine ecosystems, the legislation aimed at improving the conservation and management of marine coastal areas in European and Contiguous Seas (ECS) underwent crucial advances. ECS, however, still remain largely affected by increasing threats leading to biodiversity loss. Here, by using emblematic case...

As a response to increasing human pressures on marine ecosystems, the legislation aimed at improving the conservation and management of marine coastal areas in European and Contiguous Seas (ECS) underwent crucial advances. ECS, however, still remain largely affected by increasing threats leading to biodiversity loss. Here, by using emblematic case...

Phenological shifts are widely reported for different species as a response to climate change. Still, the efficiency of this mechanism is questioned because of the accelerated rate of change and the different change patterns of various climate parameters that may cause mismatches. Here, using loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) as model specie...

Ecologists must understand how marine life responds to changing local conditions, rather than to overall global temperature rise, say Amanda E. Bates and 16 colleagues. Ecologists must understand how marine life responds to changing local conditions, rather than to overall global temperature rise.

To effectively tackle the challenge of biological invasions through targeted strategies and mitigation measures, managers and policy makers require adequate reporting and flow of information. For this reason, the European ‘Natura 2000’ network of protected areas, which is the main conservation tool of the European Union, is supported by a standardi...

Terrestrial, freshwater, and marine ecosystems are connected via multiple biophysical and ecological processes. Identifying and quantifying links among ecosystems is necessary for the uptake of integrated conservation actions across realms. Such actions are particularly important for species using habitats in more than one realm during their daily...

Biological invasions threaten biodiversity in terrestrial, freshwater and marine ecosystems, requiring substantial conservation and management efforts. To examine how the conservation planning literature addresses biological invasions and if planning in the marine environment could benefit from experiences in the freshwater and terrestrial systems,...

The conservation of biological diversity represents a major challenge for modern societies. Research offers the fundamental information to advance and integrate our knowledge on ecological systems, their processes and interactions. Yet, the transfer of scientific knowledge and results represents a critical step towards enhancing conservation effici...

For the past two decades, the need to shield strategic maritime interests, to tackle criminality and terrorism at or from the sea and to conserve valuable marine resources has been recognized at the highest political level. Acknowledging and accounting for the interplay between climate change, the vulnerability of coastal populations and the occurr...

The effective conservation of marine biodiversity through an integrated ecosystem-based management approach requires a sound knowledge of the spatial distribution of habitats and species. Although costly in terms of time and resources, acquiring such information is essential for the development of rigorous management plans and the meaningful priori...